James 3:17 – “Pure”

As always, here’s my fairly literal translation of this verse:

¹⁷But the from above wisdom is first pure, then peaceable, reasonable, agreeable, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, [and] without pretense.

I have been trying to really think hard about what the Lord is saying in this verse. He warned us in v15 that there is a “wisdom” that comes not from God but is ultimately demonic. I think we all need to stop and ponder that this “wisdom” (not from God) is obviously something we all find attractive and that there is a very high probability we may live our lives deceived into thinking it really is “wisdom.” From vv14-16, we learn that in our blindness, we may totally not realize it is making us arrogant, dishonest, bitter, and contentious, that it is producing in our lives not peace but rather constant trouble. Even as I sit here pondering all of this myself, I am thinking that thought alone ought to fill our hearts with a holy fear and a determination to passionately seek the Lord’s presence!

But the good news is that back in 1:5 He assured us He would generously give us His wisdom, the “from above wisdom,” if we would only ask. The verse before us, James 3:17, is obviously intended that we should hold up our lives to the light and compare them to the characteristics given in this verse. Even as we’re sincerely asking the Lord for His wisdom, we can be asking ourselves, “Do these words characterize my life?  Do they characterize the fruit of whatever I think is my ‘wisdom?’ Or is the real truth that I’m living back in vv14-16 – the wisdom that is not ‘from above?’”

I want to really ponder what this all means. I notice back in Proverbs, of course, there is much said about the beauty of God’s wisdom, as in 3:13-18: “Blessed is the man who finds wisdom … for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold … nothing you desire can compare with her. … Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who embrace her; those who lay hold of her will be blessed.” Those very words are in a sense repeated here in James. Real wisdom produces in us peaceableness and kindness.

As I dive into these characteristics of “from above” wisdom, I notice there is very likely a deliberate order. There are, technically speaking, seven qualities given. You could count eight but grammatically the “full of” is a single characteristic which happens to be given two objects. All of this reminds me of Galatians 4:22-24 and the Fruit of the Spirit which also is given as seven qualities. In fact this whole passage from v13-18, reminds me of that passage, comparing the Works of the Flesh to the Fruit of the Spirit, here comparing the wisdom “not from above” and the wisdom that is.

As I have studied these characteristics, I have tentatively translated them, “pure, then peaceable, reasonable, agreeable, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, [and] without pretense.” As I have pondered these words, I have found it challenging to pin down exactly what they mean. I think, quite frankly, most of them don’t translate easily from Greek to English. I am doing my best to be sure I understand them, but before I record my thoughts, I want to say that the most encouraging way to look at this collection of words is simply to see them all wrapped up in Jesus Himself. (He is, after all, "Christ, the wisdom of God" in I Cor 1:24!). We can dissect the words and make the valiant attempt to translate them but, in the end, I honestly think it will be the most helpful if we kind of throw up our hands and just look at Jesus. That is what I will try to do.

But first for my “valiant attempt.” Since it comes first, I want to ponder on this idea that the “from above” wisdom is first of all pure.

“Pure.” The word in and of itself is simple enough. It means “pure.” (Pretty insightful, yes?) “Pure” basically means “free from admixture or impurities” and then can be used two ways, either “pure” in the sense of like “pure cotton” meaning there are no other textiles present, or like “pure water” meaning it contains no impurities or pollutants. Obviously, here it could mean everything it could mean or perhaps it needs to be understood in some more limited sense.

On the one hand I suspect if we try to stick close to our text and interpret the word in the immediate context, James is contrasting “from above” wisdom with the “not from above” and he just got done telling us the “not from above” is characterized by duplicity. So, by “pure” he could be saying that “from above” wisdom first of all is pure in the sense that our hearts are in fact true, that we are not proclaiming “wisdom” on the outside while harboring in our hearts evil passions (like thinking we’re the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?). We’re  pure in the sense of being true. This would be the wisdom we speak when we’ve first done the heart work to make sure our motives are sincere and open before God.

But having said that, I am realizing on the other hand that none of this is possible if we are not pure in the moral sense. If I’m harboring evil thoughts or practices of any kind, my “wisdom” is suspect, no matter what I may be saying. So perhaps I need to broaden my understanding of “pure” in this context to include not just motives but my general morality as well. To support this from the text, I notice that James just said in v16 the wisdom not “from above” produces “every foul practice,” then immediately asserts the “from above” wisdom is first of all pure. So even from the text one could insist on including the moral sense of the word.

Hmmmm. I actually like what A.T. Robertson said: “In wisdom purity of character and motive is absolutely essential at any cost.” He thinks both are included in James’ sense here. I’m inclined to agree.

For whatever it’s worth, I believe that this passage has been used wrongly over the years to defend mean-spiritedness in doctrinal disputes. People have asserted that God’s wisdom is first of all pure, therefore anyone who disagrees with their interpretations and doctrines is evil and, therefore, can be lambasted in a hateful, cruel spirit. Even the Reformers devolved into what I think was an entirely unchristian spirit in their doctrinal disputes. Fox’s “Book of Martyrs” chronicles the abuses and persecution suffered by the Reformers at the hands of the Catholic Church; but a fair study of history will reveal that the Reformers were often no better when they got in power. And even amongst themselves, the Reformers were quick to be hateful to each other. My impression from reading has been that Calvin hated Luther and they both hated the Anabaptists. I’m sorry – yes, we should contend earnestly for the once delivered faith and yes, the wisdom that’s from above is first pure, but none of that justifies a hateful spirit. Honestly, I think that is exactly what James is teaching against in this whole passage. The “from above” wisdom raises us above vindictiveness, vengeance, and all of that militaristic hatefulness.

So, wrapping up, if we would live “from above” wisdom, we need as always to guard our hearts. We need for the Lord to help us be “pure” in the sense that what we’re saying on the outside is consistent with the thoughts and motives going on inside. And, we need the Lord to help us be living lives of integrity. We need both. I like what someone said, that true wisdom is literally the image of God. As I said above, I suspect, in the long run, the best way to understand this whole passage is simply to look at Jesus. True wisdom will always look like Him.

God help us all today to be pure like Jesus was pure – in all the different ways that was true -- so what we think is “wisdom” will really be “from above!”